by Maralee Cook | March 22, 2017 | Adventure Sports, Fall, Featured, Local Parks, Outdoors, Seasons, Spring, Summer, Trails, Winter | 0 Comments

If you’re an adventurous explorer, you’ve come to the right place. Our North Woods are in the heart of four-season natural beauty with thrill-a-minute activities. A passionate group of entrepreneurs have developed their own visions to share, creating...

by Maralee Cook | March 22, 2017 | Boating & Harbors, Fishing & Hunting, Outdoors, Seasons, Spring, Summer | 0 Comments

There’s fresh water, water, everywhere and even some to drink in Manistee County’s North Coast Region (with a wink and apologies to Samuel Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”). We invite you to immerse yourself in the laid-back lake life in our...

by Manistee VB | September 10, 2016 | Conversations, Fall, Featured, Local History, Summer | 1 Comment

Farming in Manistee County is not just a job for the families who live and work here- it is part of their history and culture. Each individual farming family is unique in its own way, celebrating the traditions of ancestors through each crop they harvest...

by Maralee Cook | August 10, 2016 | Beer, Wine & Sprits, Fall, Seasons | 0 Comments

As is true of so many businesses in Manistee County, the Northern Natural Cider House and Winery in Kaleva is a family operation. When I visited, the Dad, Dennis Mackey, is still living in his great grandfather’s home built in 1905, with wife Diane, and...

by Manistee VB | February 10, 2016 | Historic Tours, Local History, Self Guided Tours | 2 Comments

In 1941, a unique home was built in Kaleva out of 60,000 glass bottles by John Makinen.   Mr. Makinen owned the local pop bottling factory so he used chipped or flawed bottles from his pop bottling factory for his house. It was designed with artistic...

by Manistee VB | January 20, 2016 | Beaches, Outdoors, Spring, Summer | 0 Comments

Traveling with your four legged companions is becoming more and more of a norm in the travel world, so rest assured that we have places that welcome your pets. A top beach in the Manistee Area would be the North Beach Access.  Perfect, out of the way, and...

by Manistee VB | February 10, 2016 | Adventure Sports, Conversations, Outdoors | 0 Comments

Multi-kilometer bicycle cruises, northern Lower Michigan scenery, campfires and camaraderie. It seemed like a success story just waiting to be written for Manistee County native Bob Schuelke. He turned a love of cycling and the community he grew up in into...

by Brandon Jensen | February 18, 2016 | Fall, Outdoors, Spring, Summer, Trails, Winter, Winter Trails & Slopes | 31 Comments

NOTICE: RED BRIDGE TRAIL CLOSED FOR CONSTRUCTION : For those looking to cross the Big Manistee River at Red Bridge, you will be unable to do so because of bridge reconstruction and trail improvements.  Read the full notice from the US Forest Service...

by Manistee VB | February 17, 2016 | Conversations, Local History | 0 Comments

Not far outside the Victorian port city, you’ll find one of Michigan’s favorite gaming destinations, Little River Casino Resort. Located at the intersection of US 31 and scenic M-22, Little River offers over 1,500 slots, BINGO, and a variety of table games...

by Mark Fedder | February 1, 2016 | Historic Tours, Local History | 1 Comment

While salt was more or less discovered in Manistee, sand, on the other hand, was an abundant problem that residents of the city have had to, more or less, endure. In the past, the area's sand dunes gave the city a unique reputation for being pretty to look...